Virgin River Season 5 Part 2 review: A welcome dose of festive relief

❘ Published: 2023-11-30T08:01:00

Jack and Mel in Virgin River Season 5 Part 2

Netflix

Virgin River, Netflix’s acclaimed small-town series, is back with two festive episodes. Packed with holiday spirit, enough festivities to rival a Hallmark Christmas movie and some ominous twists, Season 5 Part 2 concludes a standout season.

Season 5 Part 2 of Virgin River takes place at the most wonderful time of the year. For two episodes only, the traditional soap opera-style succession of life-altering events comes to a halt, as our favourite Californian small town takes a moment to indulge in wholesome festivities.

Decked in tinsel, plaid, and non-stop smiles, this installment offers some much-needed light relief after the relentless traumas in the first 10 episodes. A wildfire raged through the town and challenged the community’s steadfast spirit, Mel suffered a miscarriage, Mike was shot and Jack’s caravan business was used as a front for a drug ring. Not to mention that Charmaine revealed the twin’s father was Jack’s nemesis and criminal gang leader, Calvin, and Mel discovered that her mother had an affair with a man in Virgin River, who might be her real father.

Patrick Sean Smith, the new showrunner, raised the stakes and the pace of the sleepy-town series, and left many unanswered questions for part two to resolve. Does Jack find out about the twin’s real father? Will Doc lose his sight? Who is Mel’s father?

From the first nine minutes that Netflix released earlier this week, it was clear that Season 5 Part 2 would offer a rare indulgence for the picturesque town to dive into its charming Hallmark Christmas quality. However, behind the twinkly, cocoa-filled façade lies some more relatable holiday experiences; navigating divorced parents, estranged family members, bumping into ex-partners and remembering people who are no longer with us.

With Season 6 on the way, plenty of new seeds of dramatic storylines are dotted around, ready to firmly come to fruition in 2024 (we hope). Be warned, spoilers ahead!

Chosen family

Christmas wouldn’t be Christmas without unwanted guests, family tension and last-minute drop outs, now, would it? Admirably Jack and Mel have decided to host both of their families for the holidays to give everyone the chance to meet before their upcoming wedding.

The well-intended festivities inevitability spotlight the familiar fractures in each family’s dynamic. Jack and his sister Brie play peacekeeper for their newly divorced parents, as their previously unheard-of relatives cancel last minute due to being snowed in. Even though, their vision of a big, happy, family Christmas crumbles, the mood is deliciously light, flirty, and joyful.

Lizzie and Denny are in a babymoon bubble after her unexpected pregnancy, which has only brought them even closer with their parental figures Doc and Hope. Chosen family, found in the close-knit community, prevails in these two episodes and becomes the foundation for which all the residents’ lives are grounded in, as seen earlier in the season with their camaraderie in the fire.

Season 5 Part 2 focuses on Mel’s Father Christmas

Tom Butler as Sam, Martin Henderson as Jack Sheridan, Alexandra Breckenridge as Mel Monroe, Ezra Wilson as Theo in Virgin River Season 5 Part 2

A pivotal focus of this season is Mel’s search for her real father. After the bombshell that the big city nurse has family ties in the small town, Mel and Jack set out on a treasure trail to track down the identity of this mystery man.

Naturally, the couple’s clues lead them to the central festivities occurring around town, first at the Christmas markets, then the ice rink, before seeking out the former mail-man turned local Santa at the mall. Thankfully, Santa gives Mel the gift she’s been looking for and reveals the letter-sender is known as Champ after he won Virgin River’s 1976 Lumberjack games.

Though the local legend still lives nearby, their Christmas Eve reunion swiftly turns sour. He dismisses Mel and tells her she has the wrong house, even though she spots the trophy behind him. A disheartened Mel is comforted by her chosen family and even asks Doc to walk her down the aisle, as she adds: “The best people in my life are the ones who chose to be in it.”

Virgin River is full of sickly, sweet Yuletide spirit

Stuffed with peppermint snacks and hot cocoa, these two episodes are brimming with sickeningly, sweet displays of love similar to that found in every picture-perfect Hallmark movie. After Hope wins the annual Christmas tree decorating competition, Doc proposes to her as he wants to relive their wedding day, before he potentially loses his sight.

Jack grants Mel’s other wish and gets her a ‘Pony’ (well a puppy called Pony), while Muriel and Dr Cameron demonstrate their enviable chemistry as they front the festive musical together. Even knitting circle staple Lydie is loved-up with her former high-school crush turned local Santa, while Jack’s mother arrives with her new boyfriend in tow for Christmas to flaunt in front of her ex-husband.

Kaia also decides to opt for a local position to stay closer to Preacher, as the turbulent beginnings of their relationship now blossom into a stable and promising future. It’s a period of collective joy for the town, a far cry from the hardships and grief that challenged them earlier in the season. There are hints of prospective problems in the future – Lizzie’s mother’s disappointment in her teen pregnancy and Muriel telling Dr Cameron she doesn’t want kids – but they’re glossed over and resolved for the holidays.

Season 5 also bore a new love triangle between Brie and the two former marines, Mike and Brady. Though Brie and Brady continue to move on with their other halves, they almost share a kiss underneath the mistletoe, after he says: “It’s hard watching someone you love move on, no matter how happy you are for them.”

Season 5 closes with a Christmas miracle

In the midst of the festivities, a true Christmas miracle occurs when Charmaine finally gives birth to her long-awaited twins. The heavily pregnant mother-to-be announced her happy news back at the end of Season 1. Since then, viewers have waited in frustration for these babies to make an appearance.

Thankfully, mid-wife Mel is on hand along with Doc and the babies arrive safely, bringing to a close Charmaine’s long-reigning emotional manipulation of the residents of Virgin River… for now at least.

With another season confirmed, it was inevitable that not everything would be wrapped up, neatly with a bow. As the festive season draws to a close, the familiar sinister undertone to this small-town drama starts to return.

Brady’s seemingly sweet new girlfriend sneaks off to accept a call with her daughter’s father from prison, who turns out to be Calvin’s right-hand man, Jimmy. It’s insinuated that the couple planned for her to get close to Brady, as a form of revenge on the ex-marine. It seems his short-lived freedom from the criminal underworld won’t last much longer…

Preacher’s newfound happiness with Kaia is also threatened when Mike confirms that the unknown body has been identified as Paige’s ex-husband Wes. Once news travels of this discovery, Wes’ twin Vince will return and the grim truth about those fateful events may come to light…

Moments before the final episode ends, Mel’s father arrives at her door and declares he wants to be a part of her life and apologises for his initial shock at her surprise appearance. The promising development begins to falter, as Mel’s smile falls and he confesses that he has something to tell her… but the camera pans away.

With plenty of drama on the horizon, let’s hope you enjoyed Virgin River’s brief wholesome, festive-fuelled trip, as it seems it’s firmly come to an end now the holidays are over.

Virgin River Season 5 Part 2 review score: 3/5

Virgin River Season 5 Part 2 is a glorious indulgence of the small-town drama’s quaint Hallmark qualities. Momentarily, the show forays into a light, festive alternate reality and brings the twinkly, Christmas-corny goodness to the forefront. It isn’t overbearingly sweet or too far removed from the main storylines either, as it’s inevitable that this peace won’t last for much longer.

The seeds of Season 6’s major storylines have been sown, but after 10 episodes tackling life’s relentlessly heavy challenges, part two provides a welcome dose of light relief for both viewers and the residents of Virgin River.

Virgin River Season 5 Part 2 is streaming on Netflix now. You can check out more of our coverage below: